Belle, 

I absolutely love the look of layered necklaces, say 3 chains with pendants, that I see on other people.   The chains are all different lengths and I have lots of pendants ranging from sparkly to sparse to “old fashioned”, but when I mix them up, it looks off and never as nice when I see it online. How can I make this work? I work in a business casual environment on the higher end of business casual. 

Thanks! Jill

Building a layered look with your jewelry starts with knowing the lengths of your necklaces.  As you can see, the woman in the photo (found on Pinterest) is wearing a 14″, a 16″, an 18″ and a 24″ necklace.  So start buy pairing up necklaces based on length so that you have gradation.

Now, let’s talk about pairing necklaces, because length is only one thing you need to consider.  You also need to take into account the type, shape and color of your necklaces.  Here are a few pairings that I really like. 

All of these necklaces have two things in common: similar chain widths and oxidized metal.  The first necklace, by Avindy and sold at Max & Chloe, is 15″ long and would touch the collarbones.  Instead of a drop pendant, the second necklace has an inset bezel design, on an oxidized chain with some cut crystal for $113.  The last pendant is a bit different, it has a bib portion covering the bottom section and a citrine, teardrop pendant.  

I chose this combination because the top pendant is darker and the bottom one lighter giving it a bit of a reverse-ombre look.  This would look great with a grey v-neck sweater or over the top of a yellow crewneck top.

For this grouping, I chose horizontal pendants.  Arrow pendants are on trend right now.  This one from Goldyn will run you $240, but if you want something less expensive, this Anthropologie necklace is just $38.  The second pendant is from ginette_ny.  The pendant can be engraved with eight characters on the front and eight characters on the rear.  And the last pendant, a gorgeous lapis trinket from designer Jennifer Meyer, is an eye-popping $1,600.  

Love lapis but not the price? This bullet-shaped stone pendant will run you $150.

I found a few other pendants that would make excellent layering pieces.  This long, hammered gold pendant is 20″ long and would make a great anchor piece for a layered grouping.  In the under-$100 range, I loved this rose quartz pendant, this arrowhead-shaped pendant and this pearl medallion necklace.

Lastly, the best way to figure out if your necklaces go together is to measure them, and then lay them out like a puzzle.  And if you need to add a few to your collection to build a beautifully coordinated set, try Etsy, Bauble Bar, Max & Chloe or Charm & Chain.